{"files"=>["https://ndownloader.figshare.com/files/456559", "https://ndownloader.figshare.com/files/456568", "https://ndownloader.figshare.com/files/456577", "https://ndownloader.figshare.com/files/456590", "https://ndownloader.figshare.com/files/456602"], "description"=>"<div><p>The conservation of insect pollinators is drawing attention because of reported declines in bee species and the ‘ecosystem services’ they provide. This issue has been brought to a head by recent devastating losses of honey bees throughout North America (so called, ‘Colony Collapse Disorder’); yet, we still have little understanding of the cause(s) of bee declines. Wild bumble bees (<em>Bombus</em> spp.) have also suffered serious declines and circumstantial evidence suggests that pathogen ‘spillover’ from commercially reared bumble bees, which are used extensively to pollinate greenhouse crops, is a possible cause. We constructed a spatially explicit model of pathogen spillover in bumble bees and, using laboratory experiments and the literature, estimated parameter values for the spillover of <em>Crithidia bombi</em>, a destructive pathogen commonly found in commercial <em>Bombus</em>. We also monitored wild bumble bee populations near greenhouses for evidence of pathogen spillover, and compared the fit of our model to patterns of <em>C. bombi</em> infection observed in the field. Our model predicts that, during the first three months of spillover, transmission from commercial hives would infect up to 20% of wild bumble bees within 2 km of the greenhouse. However, a travelling wave of disease is predicted to form suddenly, infecting up to 35–100% of wild <em>Bombus</em>, and spread away from the greenhouse at a rate of 2 km/wk. In the field, although we did not observe a large epizootic wave of infection, the prevalences of <em>C. bombi</em> near greenhouses were consistent with our model. Indeed, we found that spillover has allowed <em>C. bombi</em> to invade several wild bumble bee species near greenhouses. Given the available evidence, it is likely that pathogen spillover from commercial bees is contributing to the ongoing decline of wild <em>Bombus</em> in North America. Improved management of domestic bees, for example by reducing their parasite loads and their overlap with wild congeners, could diminish or even eliminate pathogen spillover.</p></div>", "links"=>[], "tags"=>["pathogen", "spillover", "commercially", "reared", "bumble", "bees"], "article_id"=>149929, "categories"=>["Cancer", "Ecology"], "users"=>["Michael C. Otterstatter", "James D. Thomson"], "doi"=>["https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002771.s001", "https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002771.s002", "https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002771.s003", "https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002771.s004", "https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0002771.s005"], "stats"=>{"downloads"=>14, "page_views"=>8, "likes"=>0}, "figshare_url"=>"https://figshare.com/articles/Does_Pathogen_Spillover_from_Commercially_Reared_Bumble_Bees_Threaten_Wild_Pollinators_/149929", "title"=>"Does Pathogen Spillover from Commercially Reared Bumble Bees Threaten Wild Pollinators?", "pos_in_sequence"=>0, "defined_type"=>4, "published_date"=>"2008-07-23 02:45:29"}